The Ravens have been without veteran nose tackle Michael Pierce for the last four weeks now, officially making him eligible to return from injured reserve. Baltimore is preparing to do just that after designating him to return from IR today, opening his 21-day practice window, per Ravens staff writer Clifton Brown. According to ESPN’s Jamison Hensley, head coach John Harbaugh is even hopeful that Pierce will be able to return this week. 
This is a massive upgrade over the status report from last week. Only a week ago, the Ravens were reporting that they didn’t have a timeline on when Pierce would return, only that they definitely had plans to bring him back. Pierce was placed on IR with a calf injury at the end of October, and even then, the team knew that it would not be a season-ender.
The injury spread Baltimore’s defensive line incredibly thin, with injuries to Travis Jones and Brent Urban making it necessary to elevate practice squad defensive tackle Josh Tupou three times. The unit is starting to get its health back, which couldn’t come at a better time. Pierce’s return could complete a defensive line group that is about to face the league’s top rushing attack. While the Ravens’ Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry had given that title to Baltimore over the first several weeks of the season, some recent impressive performances by running back Saquon Barkley have earned Philadelphia that honor of late.
There’s work yet to be done in order for the Ravens’ defensive line to be full-strength against Barkley and the Eagles. Baltimore will keep a close eye on Pierce in their remaining practices this week before anything becomes official, but the good news is that it sounds like a return to the field will happen sooner rather than later.